New Delhi: When Somdev Kishore Devvarman sent former world number one Carlos Moya packing from the 2009 Chennai Open, the cynics could be pardoned for their sneers since the Spaniard was already a spent force. But to his credit he went on to make it to the finals of the tournament where he went down to Croat Marin Cilic who is among the top bracket on the men's tour.
By becoming the first Indian to win the Asian Games singles gold he has outdone his more accomplished predecessors i.e. Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi (Lea-Hesh).
Without taking anything away from Lea and Hesh, let's hope for Somdev's sake that he does not try and emulate everything that the highly famed duo went through in their rather up and down career.
The obvious litmus test for Devvarman is how he comes to terms with all that follows the euphoria of the Asiad.
Sania Mirza is the perfect example of how one can fall by the wayside after a rather promising start on the big stage. She is possibly the encyclopedia of all the donts of a professional sporting athlete. Is her marriage to controversial Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik not one of them?
The 2005 season when she created flutters in the tennis fraternity seems like a lifetime away. That was the year in which she had a couple of impressive showings at grand slams, making it to the third round at the Australian Open and the round of 16 at Flushing Meadows.
It now seems that she is just resting on past laurels and maybe that was her ultimate motive.
She is defensive about her losses at the Commonwealth and Asian Games by pointing out her silver and bronze winning efforts, not acknowledging that the competition at those events is not top drawer.
Well, perhaps she has just changed the goalposts.
As far as Leander and Mahesh are concerned, the two epitomize how one can let external forces create a situation of conflict and self doubt.
What can one say about a pair which splits after making it to the finals of all four grand slam events in the same year?
Not to mention that they were winners that year in 1999 at the French Open and Wimbledon.
It's baffling, how a successful tennis duo with the world at their feet can allow petty differences to come in the way of a stunningly glorious career.
However, there is no denying the sheer class that Lea and Hesh possess on court and that is why they have performed consistently in doubles and mixed doubles with different partners at the highest level.
Coming back to India's new found tennis hero Somdev Devvarman, the 25 year old from Guwahati, Assam has proved that he has the temperament to perform in mega team events.
His gold medal at the Commonwealth Games and back to back golds (singles and doubles) at the Asiad is proof enough for that.
It's just a question of whether he has the right attitude and a mature head on his 'star studded shoulders'.
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